Woods Hole Researchers Help Save 13 People From Sinking Boat In VA

PORTSMOUTH, VA — A pair of researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution are credited with helping rescue 13 people on a sinking fishing vessel in Virginia, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

Coast Guard responders and two people on a research trip from Woods Hole aided the 13 people aboard the vessel on Friday when it began to sink approximately 63 miles southeast of Chincoteague, according to a news release.

According to the Coast Guard, the 115-foot vessel collided with a 1000-foot container vessel. The Tremont, the name of the fishing boat, sent out a mayday call around 2 a.m.

That call was heard by Atlantis, a ship operated by the researchers from Woods Hole, who were the first people on the scene, traveling eight miles to reach the Tremont.

As the Coast Guard ordered the launch of a number of air crafts and boats to assist in the rescue, crew members on the Atlantis and the Drystan arrived on the scene, where they could transfer 12 people to safety.

The captain of the Tremont was lifted onto a helicopter from the boat.

No one was injured in the collision or rescue, but, representatives from the WHOI told WBUR in an email, the boat sank shortly after the captain was lifted into the helicopter.